Patrat Line/BW
Patrat can be found on Routes 1 and 2, as well as the Dreamyard. Watchog can be found in the surf-only portion of Route 1, post-story section of Dreamyard, P2 Laboratory, and on Routes 7, 15, and 18. '' '''Lady:' Hello! It's time for the "What's That?" show, were we talk about wonderful Pokemon to use in Unova! Today we are talking about the Patrat family! Watchy Watchog, have you heard of these Pokemon? Watchy: Tch tch cha! (...Are you blind? You're looking at one of them right here!...) Lady: Amazing! You're an actual Watchog! Ok, well, I'll explain about you anyway! Starting trainers in Unova can find either Patrat or Lillipup as their first Pokemon, but the latter is generally seen as the more superior choice. All of Patrat's stats are inferior to Lillipup's from the start, and Watchog's stats are nothing to write home about either. None of them breaking even base 90, whereas Lillipup follows through two evolution stages making it much worthwhile in the long run. While Stoutland can get the amazing Intimidate or even the situational Sand Rush as its abilities, the Patrat family has a 50/50 chance of getting the satisfactory Keen Eye or the borderline useless Run Away as their ability. To add insult to injury, Patrat variants with Run Away evolve into Watchog with the 'completely useless in battle' Illuminate! By the time one reaches the second GYM, most trainers will have probably boxed their Patrat for more appealing Pokemon already! However, one shouldn't really expect Watchog to kill threats by itself. That's not how it really works. The Patrat family is one of three Pokemon in story-mode Unova that has access to Hypnosis via level-up, and is the only one that gets access to Super Fang! That's pretty neat, plus it gets Crunch pretty early! If you can afford to send one out and take at least one hit, you'll be able to disrupt the opponent by putting them to sleep and halving their health! That sounds really helpful for your other Pokemon, doesn't it? Be warned that, you're pretty much playing with chance here. The sleep mechanics of Gen V have the turns of sleep last much shorter than they did in previous or later gens, so those who use Watchog will be playing into the hands of Lady Luck every time someone gets put to sleep! Rest assured, if you're willing to train one up all the way, Watchog can be a decent disruption Pokemon to use! Let's have Watchy demonstrat-zzz.... Watchy: Tch tch cha! (Hey! I'll have you know that my Return and Low Kick attacks hit pretty hard!) Important Matchups * N (Accumula Town): '''Purrloin has slightly less HP and Defense than Patrat, don't be afraid of it. * '''Bianca (Route 2): '''Level-matched, Patrat will lose out to Lillipup and Oshawott unless it is able to get lucky with Leer and last out. If a bit stronger, Bide can be used against Lillipup and has the best success against Snivy should that be her starter. * '''Cheren (Striaton City): Purrloin is a chump, and goes down easily. Oshawott is the most dangerous of the three starters, as Snivy can be baited with Bide and Tepig's Ember is about as strong as a level-matched Patrat's Tackle. Take caution for burn, however. Note that this discretion on starter Pokemon also applies to Bianca. * Gym #1 - Cilan/Chili/Cress (Striaton City, Grass-, Fire- or Water-type): 'At equal level, Patrat's Tackle does 3HKO compared to Lillipup's 4HKO. However, note that Lillipup will likely outspeed and thus bring up the flinch chance along with setting up Work Up or having a chance to land a crit. Bide is still the most viable option to use, though risky. Against the monkeys, Fury Swipes can be the most dangerous move they'll have. The STAB moves all do around a 4HKO, whereas Patrat level-matched can do 3HKO with Tackle. Bide works best on Pansage, but less so on Pansear and Panpour who have special moves. Tread carefully, as they may take advantage of Patrat by setting up Work Up. At least they can't hit you with Lick though. * '''Cheren (Route 3): '''Purrloin is a joke, don't worry about Sand-Attack if Patrat is of the Keen Eye variant. The starter fights haven't changed from before, though Snivy and Oshawott got buffed with Growth and Focus Energy. * '''N (Nacrene City): '''Patrat against Pidove is a bit of a mirror match, but the bird's Quick Attack can be a sneaky trick so watch out. Don't fight Timburr. Tympole will overwhelm with Supersonic and Bubble Beam, it is best to leave it to someone else. If Patrat by this point has Crunch, chomp away. Don't fight Timburr still. * '''Gym #2 - Lenora (Nacrene City, Normal-type): '''Evolve to Watchog, or don't fight here at all. A Watchog will be neutered against Herdier thanks to its Intimidate ability, but it can take a hit to set up Hypnosis and then Confuse Ray before switching to someone else. Against her own Watchog, your own is in trouble of being 2HKO by Retaliate. Best thing to do is set up your own Hypnosis, and Confuse Ray like against Herdier. * '''Gym #3 - Burgh (Castelia City, Bug-type): '''Against Whirlipede, Crunch floats around the 4-5HKO range though Super Fang halves that. Best Whirlipede can do is 5HKO with Poison Tail, though watch for a crit and/or poison affliction. If Watchog is hit by Screech, switch out to someone else. Dwebble should be cut down with Super Fang first, then Crunch should be the move of choice. Leavanny is far too strong for Watchog, as a critical Razor Leaf can set the grave. * '''Bianca (Castelia City): '''Those who have beaten Burgh first will have a significantly easier time here. All three starters are dangerous to face one-on-one, but Dewott can be somewhat handled ONLY IF the Trainer still has Bide. Servine's Leech Seed is too risky to leave on, and Pignite now has Arm Thrust. Hypnosis, Super Fang and maybe Confuse Ray, and get out. Munna can be easily defeated with Crunch. The monkeys aren't so much of a threat now that Watchog is fully evolved. Herdier has Intimidate, so it cannot be faced from the start. It should be dealt with the same way as the starters. * '''Cheren (Route 4): '''The starters and monkeys can be handled the same way as stated in the Bianca matchup, above. Pidove hasn't evolved yet, it can be easily taken care of. Liepard now, is a bit of a problem. It resists Crunch, but Watchog can get lucky with some -1 Def drops. However it does have Torment, so it would be best to put it to sleep as soon as possible. * '''N (Nimbasa City): '''Sandile goes fast once Super Fang is up, be wary of Sand Tomb and Assurance however. Do not fight Scraggy at all, and do not fight Darumaka unless Watchog can get a Hypnosis on it. Fire Punch will 2HKO. Sigilyph can be put down with Crunch in about 3 hits, but Air Cutter and Psybeam linger around the 3HKO range too, and the former has a high-crit chance. Best to use Hypnosis here. * '''Gym #4 - Elesa (Nimbasa City, Electric-type): '''Landing a Hypnosis on one of her Pokemon can shut down her momentum pretty quickly, allowing you to take out one of her Emolga in 2 hits thanks to Return. Zebstrika falls to 2-3 hits of Return too, but it can be deadly if it is still awake due to how fast and physically strong it is. * '''Cheren (Route 5): '''Same as before, Tranquill poses little of a threat. * '''Gym #5 - Clay (Driftveil City, Ground-type): '''Best case is to hold a Persim Berry and hope that Krokorok uses Swagger to lend a +2 Attack boost, otherwise Watchog isn't likely to do much outside of Super Fang weakening. Palpitoad's Aqua Ring, Krokorok's Torment, and Excadrill's Hone Claws all make this battle an uncomfortable stall match. * '''Bianca (Driftveil City): '''Those who defeat Clay will have an easier time in this match. The same strategies as before, however Musharna should not be taken lightly. Herdier now has Crunch, so watch for that. * '''N (Chargestone Cave): '''Half of his team resists Dark-type moves, and 2/3 of it resists Normal-type moves. Joltik is by far the easiest kill here, followed by Boldore. The two Steel-types are best left to someone else once they have been neutered by Super Fang. * '''Gym #6 - Skyla (Mistralton City, Flying-type): '''Swoobat does a 3HKO with Acrobatics, but Crunch kills faster at a 2HKO, Watchog will be weakened for the next two Pokemon though. Unfezant and Swanna are trickier to kill, as they will likely outspeed and pull Air Slash flinches on you. * '''Cheren (Route 7): '''He now has an Unfezant, which can stall out the battle with Taunt, Roost, and Detect. Air Slash like the one Skyla used, is still a worry to deal with. Don't stay in too long if Watchog is continuously flinched. The monkeys are now fully evolved, and are holding a type-boosting item. This means that Simisage can 2HKO Watchog with Seed Bomb, Simisear 2HKOs with Flame Burst, and Simipour 2HKOs with Scald. Watchog can no longer handle these threats as comfortably as before. Dewott now has Revenge, which can screw Watchog over. Pignite no longer has Arm Thrust, but has Heat Crash so don't face it. Servine has Leaf Blade, which is really good at landing critical hits. * '''Gym #7 - Brycen (Icirrus City, Ice-type): '''Watchog at this point can ''temporarily alternat''e between Crunch, Return and Low Kick. If the trainer is willing to spend a few Heart Scales. Vanillish 3HKOs level-matched with Frost Breath, but Watchog is faster and can 2HKO with Return. Cryogonal is a glass cannon, it's strongest move Frost Breath 2HKOs while Return does the same back. Note that, Watchog is much slower than Cryogonal but the 2HKO from Return is so close to an OHKO. A Silk Scarf gives a decent chance for Watchog to OHKO, given that Cryogonal doesn't set up Reflect first. Low Kick on the other hand, takes out more than 100% of Cryogonal's health at equal level. Low Kick is the move of choice against Beartic, 2HKO while its Icicle Crash does the same. Watchog having the advantage of higher speed. * '''Bianca (Route 8): '''Same as the Cheren fight before, the starters (which are now fully evolved) and monkeys have gotten way too strong for Watchog to handle one-on-one. Musharna is easily dispatched with Crunch, and Stoutland should be carefully planned against due to Intimidate and Work Up. Low Kick and Return both 3HKO it. * '''Gym #8 - Iris/Drayden (Opelucid City, Dragon-type): '''It's all about speed here, Watchog must put Fraxure to sleep otherwise risk being pummeled by Dragon Dance. Druddigon while even slower, has Revenge and is bulkier. Watchog must put it to sleep, otherwise not face it. Super Fang triggers Rough Skin. Drayden's Haxorus has the ability Rivalry, meaning that female Watchog will have a slightly easier time against it. Like Fraxure, it must be put to sleep otherwise it will grow into an uncontrollable threat with Dragon Dance. Level-matched, Watchog 3HKOs with Return. * '''Cheren (Route 10): '''His starters have finally evolved too, but it's mostly the same fight as before. Liepard now has Night Slash, which can be very deadly given its high speed should it crit. Samurott doesn't have Revenge anymore, but it does have Encore to screw Watchog over. Return 3HKOs Samurott, Watchog can one-on-one it only if it can outspeed and avoid any crits in the fight. Serperior forgot Leech Seed, but it learned Coil which can raise its Defense. Likely, Watchog will be facing a stall match against it. Emboar is still dangerous, due to Heat Crash's power taking advantage of the fact that Watchog weighs as much as an 8-year old. Unfezant forgot Roost, go nuts against it. * '''Elite Four Shauntal (Pokémon League, Ghost-type): '''Do not fight here if you don't have Crunch. Both Watchog and Cofagrigus can 3HKO each other, but Watchog's chances will dwindle if Cofagrigus uses Will-O-Wisp on it. Once again, Watchog should be fast enough to first land a Hypnosis then spam Crunch. Same strategy should be used against Jellicent, but be warned that its ability Cursed Body has a chance to disable Crunch. Jellicent's Surf can 2HKO Watchog, but this is a doable fight. Golurk has Brick Break which can 2HKO, but is also slower than Watchog. Crunch 3HKOs. Chandelure has a chance to OHKO with Fire Blast, and it slightly outspeeds Watchog in terms of base stats. Crunch 2-3HKOs, but this is probably the most risky of her Pokemon to face. * '''Elite Four Marshal (Pokémon League, Fighting-type): '''What are you doing here? You're in the wrong room. * '''Elite Four Grimsley (Pokémon League, Dark-type): '''Liepard and Bisharp are the only ones Watchog has a real shot against. Even that is a bit risky, because both have the high-crit Nigh Slash and Bisharp can even OHKO with that crit. Luckily, it's slightly slower than Watchog. A Low Kick will 2HKO it. Krookodile outspeeds and has Intimidate as its ability, and Scrafty is too bulky while also being part Fighting-type. * '''Elite Four Caitlin (Pokémon League, Psychic-type): '''This is it, the moment you've been waiting for. Go ahead and Crunch everything! But be sure to put Reuniclus to sleep first, otherwise Watchog will be OHKO'd by Focus Blast if it hits. Musharna can put up Reflect, which can screw Watchog against her next Pokemon. Don't forget to put it to sleep first too. Sigilyph is the biggest threat, because it actually outspeeds Watchog and can spam Air Slash to flinch it. It might be best to leave it to someone else. Put Gothitelle to sleep before it gets a chance to set up Calm Mind, it's also slow. * '''Reshiram/Zekrom (N's Castle): '''Watchog is guaranteed level-matched to survive at least one of their non-crit hits to land Hypnosis and/or Super Fang, but they both outspeed and have a move that can flinch. Luckily, they're pretty easy to catch. * '''N (N's Castle): '''If Watchog fights anyone here, it will likely be too weakened to face the other team members. Reshiram or Zekrom like in the above analysis knocks the wind out of it. Carracosta is slow enough for Watchog to put it to sleep, but a critical Stone Edge will kill. Vanilluxe ''slightly outspeeds Watchog by a small margin, with all of its moves hitting the 2-3HKO range. Don't forget about Hail, which can be a drag for its duration. Archeops outspeeds Watchog, having Acrobatics as a 2HKO non-crit. Stone Edge however, will OHKO under a crit. If just for utility, Watchog can at least use Super Fang to trigger Defeatist before bailing out. Zoroark outspeeds and OHKOs with Focus Blast, don't fight it. Klinklang actually can't do much to Watchog besides a 3HKO, so while it is faster it can be put to sleep and taken care of. * '''Ghetsis (N's Castle): Cofagrigus is handled just like the one Shauntal has. Same with his Bisharp, just like Grimsley's. Bouffalant will 2HKO with Head Smash, but is slower than Watchog. Same with Eelektross. Seismitoad is slightly slower, but it can make up the lost speed if it uses Rain Dance thanks to its ability Swift Swim. Get rid of it quickly after putting it to sleep. Hydreigon is the main event, it outspeeds and can OHKO with Focus Blast. Unless one of your Pokemon set up Trick Room prior, don't send out Watchog against it. * Post-Game: '''Holy shit, how did you get a Watchog all the way here? Moves Initially, Patrat will start with '''Tackle and Leer. It'll be a slow grind trying to make do with those two moves, but luckily you get Bite at level 6 which is pretty early. Bide '''comes at level 8, but is a very situational move to use. However for the early portion of the game, it has some use as a powerful attack option. '''Detect unexpectedly appears at level 11, but is a welcome addition considering the TM for Protect is locked to those that catch at least 60 Pokemon in the Unova Dex. Along with Detect, Sand-Attack at level 13 is another move Patrat has that Lillipup does not. It's pitiful, but is more of use situation-wise than relying on Leer spam. A trainer's patience is rewarded when Patrat gets Crunch '''at level 16, being one of the earliest users of said move and an upgrade to Bite. Just before you evolve into Watchog, don't pass up on '''Hypnosis at level 18. While the accuracy is a bit on the short side, the Patrat family is one of few Pokemon in regular story-mode that can learn the move. Putting Pokemon to sleep is a great asset to have. It is essential that one evolves Patrat on time at level 20, so it can learn Confuse Ray after evolving to Watchog. A nifty disruption move to have, in conjunction with Hypnosis. A few levels later at 22, arrives the coveted Super Fang '''which makes up for Watchog's lack of physical power. '''After You at level 25 and Psych Up at level 29 are both generally useless moves, so don't bother with them. Hyper Fang '''at level 32 is already outclassed by the TM for Return, a Watchog by Nimbasa City should have max happiness by then. It learns '''Mean Look '''at level 36, however it is not wise to leave it open to dangerous threats by itself. For that reason, Mean Look is best used against the roaming Tornadus or Thundurus should a trainer attempt to catch them. At level 39, comes '''Baton Pass. It can be used in conjunction with Work Up or Substitute, but mostly just those two. Swords Dance is locked until post-game. Slam '''at level 43 has the same base power as Hyper Fang, only less accurate. Regarding the Move Reminder, '''Low Kick '''can help break through some pesky Rock and Steel-types especially those generally are more on the heavy side. Being a Normal-type, Patrat is a jack of all trades regarding TMs. '''Return '''was earlier noted for a strong STAB attack, while '''Dig '''can plow through Rock and Steel-types better. In terms of support moves; '''Toxic, Thunder Wave, Rain Dance, Sunny Day, Substitute, Work Up, and Light Screen are all decent choices and can be swapped for each other. The family also has access to some Special Attack moves such as Thunderbolt and Flamethrower, but those aren't as useful to have. The item of choice would be the Wide Lens one can obtain at the Gear Station for BP, boosting the accuracy of Hypnosis from 60% to 70%. Recommended moveset: '' 'Passive Aggressive: '''Super Fang, Hypnosis/Toxic/Thunder Wave, Confuse Ray/Return/Low Kick, Detect/Crunch Physical: '''Return, Crunch/Dig, Low Kick/Baton Pass, Work Up Recommended Teammates * '''Pokemon that can handle Rock and Steel-types: ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Emboar, Samurott, Seismitoad, Excadrill, Sawk, Scrafty, '' * '''Pokemon that can handle Ghost-types:' ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Liepard, Cofagrigus, Krookodile, Klinklang * Pokemon that can handle Fighting-types: ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Musharna, Unfezant, Sigilyph, Chandelure, Garbodor, Scolipede * Pokemon that would appreciate some assistance with disruption moves Other Patrat's stats Watchog's stats * What Nature do I want? '''Jolly is the ideal nature, basically anything that raises Speed because Watchog will need a lot of it in order to take down threats. * '''What Ability do I want? Pray to Arceus you end up with a Keen Eye variant, Illuminate doesn't hinder Watchog but it literally does nothing for it in battle. * At what point in the game should I be evolved? '''By the time you fight Lenora, or just after. * '''How good is the Patrat line in a Nuzlocke? '''It's one of the weakest of the early-game rodents, comparable to Furret. However it's niche in BW1 is that no other Pokemon in the story-mode can do what it can, be able to put Pokemon to sleep and always halve their HP. Even that is a bit risky, because Hypnosis is not 100% accurate and Watchog is no Butterfree. If you're using Watchog to try and one-on-one Pokemon most of the time, you're using it wrong. * '''Weaknesses: Fighting * Resistances: None * Immunities: Ghost * Neutralities: Normal, Flying, Poison, Ground, Rock, Steel, Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Ice, Dragon, Bug, Dark, Psychic